Maybe They're Dating
by oleanderedits
Summary: The guy in question was definitely the mysterious redneck that kept showing up in his selfies. (30DayOTP Prompt Challenge Day 28)


"Dude, he's in like, half your Instagram selfies," Amy snorted and rolled over in the bed (his bed) as she thumbed through the shots Glenn had taken. "We should set up an account for 'some hot redneck' and tag him. See how many he's actually in."

"He's probably just a regular at a few places around campus like me," Glenn answered non-committedly, thumbing through his anatomy book.

Amy shifted on the bed again so she could put one foot to the back of Glenn's shoulder and nudge him, "He's pretty old for a college student. Maybe he's stalking you."

Glenn laughed and rolled his eyes, "Yeah, sure. Or maybe he's just getting his degree later in life. Like half the world does now."

"You're no fun," Amy complained, dropping her phone to her chest and poking him with her toe again. "We should still set up an account. Have the rest of our friends tag him if they spot him in the background. See if we can find him."

"Why?" Glenn set his pen down and spun himself in his chair to catch her foot. He pulled her shoe off, then her sock, and started rubbing her sole, working his thumbs into her heel.

She let out a soft 'mmm thank you' before lifting the phone up and holding it out, showing a particularly good shot of the mysterious man in ripped flannel, "Because he'd hot and you need a boyfriend."

"I don't need a boyfriend," he protested.

She scoffed and pushed her other foot into his lap for him to take care of, "Well, you need something. And I seem to recall you swearing off women for the rest of the semester after what went down with you and Joanna."

Glenn rolled his eyes and sighed dramatically, "Fine. You can try to find him. But that doesn't mean he's into men."

"It'll mean we have a better chance of finding out!"

…

About a week later Amy flopped herself down on the bed (still his), thumbs working furiously over her phone screen until she found whatever she was looking for, "Okay, so, that guy we were tagging? Pretty sure he's gay. He keeps showing up in the background of pictures taken at Electric Avenue and the Student LGBT rallies."

Glenn leaned back in his chair and lifted a foot to push himself back a couple feet so he could get a better look at the picture Amy was holding up. The guy in question was definitely the mysterious redneck that kept showing up in his selfies. The shot Amy was showing him had him laughing and holding a beer as he leaned into the shoulder of an even older man in a leather vest and wrist cuffs. The guy looked bald, or near enough to it in the dark of the shot.

"Oh no," Glenn shook his head, groaning.

"Oh no, what?" Amy asked, blinking in confusion as she turned the phone back around so she could look at the picture again.

Glenn waved his hand vaguely, "The guy he's with. That's Merle. The asshole racist that keeps hassling me after my lecture hall every Thursday."

Amy's eyebrows shot up and she squinted to get a better look at him, "Really? Oh man, that sucks. Hold on. I'm going to make an account for asshole racist and ask people to tag him."

"What? Why?" Glenn looked up, snatching at her phone as if taking it would stop her.

She rolled out of reach anyway, "To see how often hot redneck shows up in pictures with him. Maybe they're dating."

"And you want me to compete with that? No thank you," Glenn brought his hands up in the universal sign of surrender. "If they're dating I am not going anywhere near that hot mess. I value my face."

…

"What you laughing at, baby brother?" Merle drawled out, still grinning from the chink's reaction to him twenty minutes earlier. Kid always shot out of the lecture hall he shared with Daryl first thing. Like his pants were on fire and the only way to put them out was to rush off to wherever. He ended up slowing down whenever Merle called attention to him, hunching over and clearly afraid that if he didn't Merle would be on his ass and pounding him into the dirt before he could blink. Merle had once confessed to considering it, but Daryl knew he was all talk. If he'd wanted to, he would have already.

Daryl continued to grin down at his phone as he tossed his book bag over one shoulder and got himself ready to ride, "Someone made you an Instagram account. Found it through a tag on that Korean's account."

Merle frowned and made to grab Daryl's phone. Daryl kept it out of his reach, using the fact that Merle didn't really want to get off his bike against him. He laughed at his brother and kept flicking through the tags, "Man, they got you a great username, too. 'asshole-outside-lecture-hall'."

Merle snorted and leaned back, giving up on trying to get the phone for the moment as he chewed on one thumb the way Daryl sometimes did. Looking for a moment like he was lost in thought. When he spoke, it was with the haze of confusion that was just one step away from figuring a puzzle out, "You been watching that chinaman's account for a while?"

"Korean," Daryl corrected the way he always did nowadays, "And so what if I was? Him and his friends keep tagging me in their pictures on that account they made for me."

"It ain't your real account," Merle pointed out, studying his brother.

Daryl shrugged and finally tucked his phone away into his pants. He climbed on the bike behind his brother, "Yeah, but I don't do that stupid selfie shit on mine."

Merle laughed and leaned forward to get the bike started, "Nah, you do that faggot artsy shit."

Daryl's answering 'shut up Merle' was lost in the roar of the engine.

…

"Hey! Chinaman!" Merle shouted and Glenn cringed. "Come here for a second!"

He slowed his steps and turned to face the man from twenty feet away. He didn't feel he had any reason to get closer, "I'm Korean. What do you want, Merle?"

"Whatever," the distinction was waved off as the man waved at him to close the distance, "Come on. Don't be shy. I won't bite. I just want to talk to you. I know about that account you and your friends made for me on that picture site."

Glenn felt the blood rush away from his face and was left suddenly cold with his heart beating heavy in his chest. He gulped and dropped his head, feet shuffling toward Merle out of the power of guilt alone. Apologies were on his lips as soon as he was close enough to be heard without yelling, "I didn't have any part in making that, Merle. That was my friend's idea. She was trying to figure out who this other guy you've been seen hanging out with was since he shows up in a lot of pictures I take around campus and-"

"And you didn't think to ask me?" Merle tilted his head to the side, giving an exaggerated pout, "I'm hurt, rice ball. Just wounded to the core."

Glenn gulped again, but didn't make to answer. He didn't really know what to say.

Fortunately, Merle was the talkative type. Unfortunately, he was the touchy type, too. He reached out and patted Glenn on the shoulder, his fingers clamping down hard, "Tell you what, you give me control of that account and I'll be generous enough to introduce you to that guy. He's a real sweetheart, you know. Sweetest man I know. He'd like you."

"Uh... that's okay," Glenn rushed out, trying ineffectually to pull himself out of Merle's grip. "I'll get the info on the account from Amy and you can have it. I won't bother you. No need to bother your friend."

"It's no bother," Merle's grin widened and Glenn was pretty sure it was the scariest smile he'd ever seen. "Really. In fact, here he comes now. You share this class with him. You didn't know that, did ya?"

Glenn's head shot up and he turned to look behind him as the man in question stalked toward the two of them. He had not known the man was in his lecture hall. Then again, Glenn didn't really pay attention to who was in there with him unless they sat next to him.

The man glowered at them as he got close. No, he glowered at Merle. He seemed to be trying to ignore Glenn's presence in the asshole's grip. He let his book bag drop from his shoulder as he opened a saddle bag, "Let him go, Merle."

"We was just having a pleasant chat, brother," Merle cooed far too sweetly and it was almost enough to distract Glenn from the word 'brother'. But then Merle was looking back at him and smiling, "We're we, _Korea_?"

"Uh... yeah," Glenn gulped as his shoulder was shaken just slightly before it was released. He wasn't sure if he was more surprised Merle had called him by the right country or that he'd done what hot redneck had asked.

Hot redneck climbed on the back of the bike and Merle reached out to pat Glenn on the stomach, grinning like a fool, "His name's Daryl. Sit with him next week."

Hot redneck (Daryl) growled something at Merle, but the man had already started the engine and was yelling 'what was that?' over his shoulder as he rode off.

…

Daryl hunkered down in his seat and fumed at the company. About half-way through he muttered, "You don't really have to sit with me."

"I'm afraid of what Merle will do if I don't," Glenn countered.

Daryl looked to the side, chewing that over in his head before he grunted. Glenn assumed that was as close to 'fair enough' as he was going to get. It took another half hour before Daryl fished out his phone and held it out to Glenn.

Glenn took it, looking first to Daryl, who kept his eyes pointedly forward. Then he let himself focus on the screen. Instagram was open and the account was not a familiar one. He checked the info for it, what had been posted, and was surprised to find that all of it was either art from around campus or some very strange photography. No selfies, just art. But the pictures the account had liked were mostly the ones Amy had tagged 'hot redneck' in. Glenn gave Daryl a questioning look as he passed it back.

Daryl hunched over and muttered, "You can tag me properly if you want. I ain't hidin' from no one."

"Amy was tagging you because she thought I needed a boyfriend," Glenn blurted before he could stop himself. That wasn't what he'd intended to say, but it just kind of came out.

Daryl turned his head to eye him for a second before looking away with an amused smirk. That smirk became a full blown smile as his shoulders shook with barely contained laughter. Eventually he managed to get out, "Merle told you to sit with me for the same reason. Bunch of assholes, ain't they?"

"Yeah," Glenn laughed, relaxing after nearly two hours of sitting there tense and worried. "So uh... dirty-and-angry, huh?"

"Like you got room to talk, kim-chi-pancakes."

"Hey! My mom taught me how to make those and they are the best pancakes you'll ever have!"

"You gonna make me some, then?"

Glenn bit his lower lip and looked down at his blank notebook. After a moment he shrugged, "Sure. It's a date."

Daryl groaned, "Aw hell, don't call it that. You'll just make Merle all smug for the next year and no one needs that."


End file.
